Page 37 of Taking Chances

I dig into the food like a man starved while she picks at hers, barely eating anything.

“Not hungry?” I ask.

“Oh, not too hungry, I guess.” The smile she gives me is trained, fake. Bile rises in my throat when I realize she’s pretending to eat like a tiny little bird because she was probably taught that way.

“Remember what we said? Do what makesyouhappy, not what someone suggested you should do.” I cut a giant piece of pancakes drizzled with syrup and offer the fork to her.

She watches it apprehensively before closing her mouth around it.

“God,” she moans, chewing it, her eyes wrinkled with a smile. The sound shoots straight to my poor, neglected dick.

“Good?”

“So good.” She starts eating, thank fuck. We talk in between bites, drink our coffees, and laugh.

I expected it to be weirder, considering what transpired yesterday, but she seems fully relaxed. I guess even her hopelessly romantic heart can’t think of me as a person of interest. At least not beyond the sexual part.

That’s good, right?

15

ANNE

“How was the wedding?” Rina asks, entering the break room.

“Tell us everything,” Natalie purrs, walking in behind her.

They make themselves comfortable, or as comfortable as they can on the small white plastic chairs, staring at me intently.

“It was… good,” I respond, swallowing a bite of my leftover chicken stir-fry.

“Good? It was your ex’s wedding where you brought a fake date. How can good even be an option?” Natalie’s deep brown eyes regard me with suspicion, and my ears start burning.

I won’t tell them about what happened between Lennox and me. I can’t. They would have a field day with it, and I don’t want their jokes to taint the memory. The perfectly preserved memory that I’ll probably be thinking of on my deathbed.

It’s mypreciousand I’m not letting it go.

Clearing my throat, I elaborate, “By good I mean better than expected. First it got much worse, but by the end it was good.”

“Why did it get much worse?” Rina inquires, opening the homemade quinoa salad Connor prepared for her. Both Mattand Connor make delicious lunches for their wives every day. My stomach twists, reminding me how far I am from having someone take care of me.

“Kaitlyn and Brad were there.”

“No way.” Rina’s eyes pop open.

“Yup. I guess they didn’t really mind Bryce dumping me.”

“Unbelievable.” Natalie was never a fan of Kaitlyn’s. I felt the need to defend my sister’s actions in front of my friends a few times, but not anymore. She deserves all they have to say.

“Good thing you had Lennox there,” Rina adds.

“Yeah, he was really helpful. And a real thorn in Kaitlyn’s side.”

Rina glances at me with a glint in her eyes while Natalie asks, “What do you mean?”

“She was furious about me dating someone like him. She called him a delinquent.” I whisper the last word, but laughter bubbles out.

“And you found her scrutinizing youfunny?” Natalie’s face scrunches. Usually, it’s hard for me to deal with her judgment on my life.

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